European Parliament members presented a joint draft report on Wednesday regarding the European Commission's proposed Cloud and AI Development Act (CADA). The report calls for common EU rules on cloud and AI infrastructure to strengthen digital sovereignty and reduce reliance on foreign technology providers. The proposal aims to bolster European technology companies and increase international competitiveness by establishing common standards for cloud services and strengthening protections for critical sectors such as energy, transport, and healthcare.
Data from the Commission indicates that three non-European hyperscale cloud providers currently control more than 70% of the European cloud market. This concentration has raised concerns regarding security, data sovereignty, and operational autonomy. The draft report suggests that public authorities should purchase more cloud services from European providers to assist them in competing with foreign firms. Additionally, the report advocates for faster approval procedures for new data centers, provided they meet environmental requirements and benefit local communities.
Spanish conservative MEP Diego Solier stated during a press conference that the issue involves both economic competitiveness and the capacity to make independent decisions. Solier argued that technological sovereignty is not about closing Europe to the rest of the world, but rather ensuring the bloc has the capacity to act, compete, and choose.
Dutch green MEP Reinier Van Lanschot warned that critical systems currently run on technology owned by others that could be switched off, potentially affecting hospitals, ministries, or grid operators. Van Lanschot noted that European businesses are not asking for subsidies but are instead asking for customers.
The proposed legislation arrives as the EU seeks to reduce reliance on other countries for security, materials, and critical infrastructure. This follows a June incident where the US government ordered Anthropic to block access to its Claude Fable 5 and Mythos 5 AI models from outside the US due to security concerns, though access was restored later that month. The incident intensified discussions regarding the existence of "kill switches" held by the US government and tech companies over European civilian and military infrastructure.
Under the Commission's proposal, the EU intends to triple its data center capacity over the next five to seven years. The draft report is expected to be published on Thursday and will be discussed by European parliamentary committees on 1 December. A committee vote is provisionally scheduled for mid-March 2027, with a plenary vote following in April of next year.
